Three years later, Kevin Rudd finds himself behind Julia Gillard

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd hasn't been forced to battle the damaging leaks that all but destroyed Julia Gillard's campaign three years ago, but he and his Labor government suddenly find themselves in a much worse position than that which engulfed Ms Gillard at the same time in the last federal election.

Just short of three weeks out from the 2010 election, Gillard Labor had slumped to a primary vote of 36 per cent against the Abbott opposition's 45 per cent in the Fairfax/Nielsen poll, and 37 per cent to 44 per cent in Newspoll, or 50-50 on the two-party preferred scale.

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Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard.

Rudd Labor, also a few days short of three weeks before the election, is now on a 34 per cent primary vote, while the Abbott Coalition is on 47 per cent, according to the latest Newspoll.

That equates to a two-party preferred vote of 54 per cent to the opposition and a losing 46 per cent for Labor.

Mr Rudd, in short, has a vastly steeper cliff to climb than Ms Gillard faced if he is to have any chance of retaining the prime ministership.

The only advantage he enjoys is that he is not being undermined by the sort of leaks that brought Ms Gillard low.

Shortly before her slump, news reports quoted unnamed sources saying that she had tried to limit the increase in the age pension in the previous year's budget and wanted to kill the idea of paid parental leave altogether.

The source or sources of the leaks were never identified.

Mr Rudd at the time was in hospital having his gall bladder removed.

Shortly after, Ms Gillard arranged to meet him to persuade him to throw his weight behind her campaign.

Ms Gillard also publicly re-fashioned herself as "the new Julia", and her party turned its attention to attacking Mr Abbott.

Mr Rudd and his campaign team are now stepping up their public attacks on Mr Abbott, buying advertising time to warn that "if he [Abbott] wins, you lose".

Mr Rudd, having started the campaign saying he wanted an end to negativity, has defended his new negative stance by saying it is based on policy.

Whether he can turn around his campaign remains to be seen, but he has a task that has no recent comparison.